Arbitration in India

With the rapid globalization of the economy and the resulting increase in competition there has been a significant increase in commercial disputes. The outpaced rate of development has led to increase in industrial growth, modernization, improved socio-economic circumstances, technological development which in turn has led to an increase in case overloads for the already overburdened courts.

Development and disputes are two sides of the same coin, which means that the alarming rate of development has its snag, which is the increasing number of the disputes in various sectors.

The multiplying of outstanding cases in the courts, exorbitant delays in the administration of justice and expenses of litigation have continued to plague people thereby undermining their faith in the justice system. The issue at hand is to examine and choose a right formal legal system, such as Alternative Dispute Resolution procedures. India has a standing as being one of the oldest in the history of the judicial system. However, according to the latest data given by National Judicial Data Grid over 2 crore cases have been pending in the country. Alternate Dispute Resolution has floated from the fundamental rights which have been enshrined in our Constitution, namely Article 14 which deals with Equality before law and Article 21 which deals with the right to life and personal liberty. The primary motive of this resolution mechanism is to provide social-economic and political justice and maintain integrity in the society. It also strives to achieve equal justice and free legal aid provided under Article 39-A relating to Directive Principles of State Policy.

Arbitration is an Alternate dispute resolution mechanism or more precisely a private process whereby parties to a dispute submit to a neutral third party or parties (called arbitrator) by whose decision they agree to be bound, without resorting to court action.

The arbitration landscape in India is defined by the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 19964 (the Arbitration Act). The Arbitration Act is made up of two parts. Part I which applies to disputes with their seat of arbitration in India and gives the Indian courts significant powers to appoint or replace arbitrators, hear procedural appeals, grant interim measures, and set aside arbitral awards. This is often termed "onshore arbitration". Part II applies to disputes where the seat of arbitration is outside of India and incorporates the New York Convention and the Geneva Convention into Indian law. This is often termed "offshore arbitration".

Arbitration is traditionally preferred due to various factors. These include desire for secrecy, inclination to shift to a system where industry experts can take decisions rather than traditional judicial officers and judges, possibility of flexible procedures, the leeway given to parties to settle a dispute without shaking the business relations. 

However, there has been an increasing perception too that arbitration may have become parallel to litigation since it has started becoming "informally formal," expensive and potentially leads to prolonged advocacy.

Therefore, in such a scenario, it becomes essential that the law firm being hired to look into your arbitration solves disputes with fairness and flair. Specialisation in Corporate and Commercial arbitration, financial claims- NBFCS and execution of awards is a must. 

IndiaLaw LLP is a leading law firm across India, which provides a one stop legal service in Mumbai, Delhi Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Cochin, Ahmedabad and Pune. For more details Arbitration Law Firm in India, Litigation Law Firm in India.